


sleepovers and other things

by pheonix85



Series: fall together [3]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Gen, Sleepovers, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, but a couple of the others are getting into it too
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-14
Updated: 2019-04-14
Packaged: 2020-01-13 07:07:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18463972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pheonix85/pseuds/pheonix85
Summary: “Besides, I got a surprise for you back at the Tower. A couple of work buddies who’ve been asking about you.”Peter’s heart began to race. “Really?!”“Really.” Tony nodded. He looked back at May. “Nothing dangerous, I promise. There’s just a certain super soldier who just discovered Super Smash Brothers and is looking for some fresh blood.” He grinned at her. “He said to say hi, by the way.”orPeter's 12 and stays over at the Tower when May has to work unexpectedly. Peter hangs out with the Avengers and Tony addresses some uncertainties.





	sleepovers and other things

**Author's Note:**

> you should read the rest of the series to know what's going on. the premise is Tony was assigned to Peter as a "Role Model"/mentor of sorts (think the Paul Rudd movie but appropriate for children) when Peter is 5 and this is a continuation of that. 
> 
> i just really wanted one more fluffy, fun one shot before we start getting into the Spiderman stuff for this series so here ya go! please enjoy.

It was supposed to be a normal day. It was just a Thursday, but Friday was a teacher in-service day and May had to work overnight, and so Mr. Stark said he could stay at the tower if he wanted to.

 

And of course, he _wanted_ to. He’d been friends with Mr. Stark for a long time now, like almost half his whole life, but visiting Mr. Stark’s house had never gotten old. Sometimes, though Peter would never admit it, he missed the penthouse where they’d had Christmas, and dinners with Aunt May and where he and Mr. Stark had watched the Clone Wars and stayed up later than May usually let him. 

  
But only sometimes.

 

It wasn’t just that Stark Tower was this sort of monolith in the sky---it wasn’t even Stark tower now, it was Avenger’s Tower, and it was so cool and Mr. Stark even had a room for Peter to stay over in. 

 

Everyone had a room, really, Peter knew that. There was even a spare room for Aunt May--- _just in case_ , Mr. Stark had said, _you never know_ ; Mr. Stark was always like that anymore, always thinking of _just in case_ but Peter thought the idea of he and Aunt May staying at the Tower was pretty cool.

 

Peter hadn’t been to the Tower since New Years though. It was only two months since then, but winter meant staying inside and Mr. Stark had been really busy in the time since the New Years Party. He knew that Pepper wasn’t feeling well the last time he’d seen her. She had smiled at him all weird and when he’d tried to hug her, she’d pushed him away with a shout and Aunt May had explained to him that whatever Pepper had, it was contagious and she didn’t want it to hurt him. 

 

But Mr. Stark had fixed her; he told Peter and May that, that Pepper was fine and healing great, and that they’d gone on a long trip away so that he could get his heart really fixed and he showed Peter that the reactor in his chest was gone and told him that now, he didn’t need it anymore. That he was taking a break from being Iron Man for a bit.

 

Peter couldn’t really decide what he thought about that. On one hand, Mr. Stark was amazing when he was Iron Man. He saved people when they were hurt and they need help, and flew around in the sky and built really cool robots. 

 

On the other hand, now that Mr. Stark’s house in California was gone, he and Pepper were living in the tower, and if he wasn’t Iron Man, maybe he would hang out with Peter more often and Peter really liked that idea. 

 

Peter was double checking the contents of his backpack when the knock came from the door to their apartment. It opened soon after---Tony had grown accustomed to letting himself in----and May looked up from her spot on the couch with a smile. 

 

“Peter, Tony’s here!”

 

“I’ll be right out!” He answered, grabbing for a ballcap hanging on one of his bedposts and pulling it on to his head. Tony grinned at him from behind the kitchen island, reaching out and squeezing his shoulder with a little shake.

 

“Hey bud, you ready to go?”

 

Peter nodded, shrugging the pack higher onto his back and turning to face his Aunt. May bent low, adjusting his cap to plant a kiss on his cheek.

 

“I’ll be by Saturday morning at 10 to get you. Remember, you have a dentists appointment at noon so make sure you brush your teeth and everything.” She looked up at Tony, repeating herself. “Make sure he brushes his teeth and flosses.”

 

“Will do. C’mon kiddo,” He moved his hand to Peter’s head, leading him towards the door.

 

“Thank you so much again for this, Tony, I know everything has been kinda crazy…”

 

Tony waved it off. “It’s all good, this actually works out really well, it’s been too long since we’ve hung out, right Pete?”

 

Peter nodded and Tony gave him a grin like he was hiding something.

 

“Besides, I got a surprise for you back at the Tower. A couple of work buddies who’ve been asking about you.”

 

Peter’s heart began to race. “Really?!”   
  


“Really.” Tony nodded. He looked back at May. “Nothing dangerous, I promise. There’s just a certain super soldier who just discovered Super Smash Brothers and is looking for some fresh blood.” He grinned at her. “He said to say hi, by the way.”

 

May turned bright red and waved a dishcloth at him. “Shut up, and get out of _here_. Peter, be good for him.”

 

He barely turned to acknowledge her, pulling the front door open and bounding into the hall with a quick “I will!” coming from his lips. Tony just smiled, waggling his brows as he followed the kid, grabbing the doorknob and pulling it closed behind him.

 

May shook her head, smiling softly at the door and turned to head to her room.

 

Tony Stark, she thought to herself. How did I end up being close friends with _Tony Stark_?

 

* * *

 

The main floor of the Tower was well lit for it being almost 8 o’clock on a Thursday night. Peter had both hands wrapped around the straps of his backpack as he hurried to keep the pace, and he followed Tony towards the elevator, the security guard at the front desk giving him a nod and a smile. 

 

“That’s Ernie,” Tony told Peter as the elevator doors closed. “He’s the security manager for the main area. If you ever have any problems and you can’t find me or Pep or Happy, you go find him, okay?”

 

Peter nodded. “I thought Mr. Happy was the guard?”

 

“He’s Pepper’s guard. And my…” Tony waved his hand in a spiraling gesture. “Sidekick. Anyway, Ernie’s the guy to ask for if you ever end up here or get lost. Understand?”

 

Peter nodded again. The elevator dinged as it came to a stop about 70 floors up, a few below where you could walk out onto the deck. Mr. Stark had made it really clear on New Year's Eve that he nor Ned was, under any circumstances, allowed out on the deck and the two had spent the night forlornly gazing at the space, trying to imagine what the view must be like from the very edge. 

 

Peter was out of the elevator as soon as the doors opened, bursting onto the floor with energy Tony wished he could harness. Tony trailed behind the kid as Peter darted towards the expansive dining area they had set up. He’d given the boy and May a tour the night of the New Years party, but they hadn’t come back down to this area and it was clear, without all the hustle and bustle of dozens of guests and sparkly, shiny things, Peter wanted to explore. 

 

“Hey, Peter! You wanna put your stuff away before you settle in too much?”

 

Peter spun in the place where he stood, finding himself a few feet away from Pepper Potts. Pepper glanced up at Tony for a moment to make sure it was alright, and he nodded, pulling out his phone to look over emails. 

 

“Uh, yeah. Yeah, I can..” Peter replied, frowning a little as he looked around the space. Pepper smiled down at him. 

 

“I’ll show you where it is if you don’t remember. Here, follow me.”

 

She led him down the hall a little and to a smaller room across from a much bigger one. She flicked on the light and found the walls decorated with a couple of movie posters and a Mets pennant above the bed. 

 

“Wow….” He whispered. “Ms. Potts, it didn’t look like this last time.”

 

She smiled. “Tony wanted it to feel a little more comfortable the next time you were here. Now,” She pivoted in the place where she stood. “Our room is right over here across the hall, so if you need anything, you come to get us, anytime at night, okay? Or just yell for JARVIS, and he’ll wake us up.”

 

Peter began to nod quickly. “Okay!” He threw the backup lazily onto the floor just inside the door of the room that had been designated as “his” and turned back to look at her. Pepper stood only a few feet away, and he was suddenly shy, tightening his fists with nerves. 

 

“Can I hug you now?” Peter asked timidly. Pepper gave him a subdued grin, nodding. 

 

“Of course you can Peter, come over here.”

 

He wrapped his arms around her waist, pressing his face into her sweater. He wasn’t completely sure what had happened, none of the adults would tell him, but all he cared about now was that she was alright and seemed to be feeling better. 

 

He pulled away finally and turned back to Mr. Stark, who was watching them with a fond look on his face at the mouth of the hallway. Peter turned and started back towards him, a little bit of a skip in his step and Tony began to head towards the kitchen island where Pepper had laid out a variety of snack foods and a pizza.

 

“Hows about we dig into the food and then we can go downstairs and see everyone?”

 

Peter’s eyes went wide. That sounded _awesome_.

 

* * *

 

The first time Peter had met Captain America, he hadn’t really talked to him.

 

The thing was, there had been so many people there during Mr. Stark’s party. A lot of adults, with drinks in their hands, and the lighting was dim and the room kind of smelled weird, and there was loudish music. Mr. Stark had told Aunt May it wasn’t going to be really big, but it felt like there were a hundred people there. Peter remembered wondering was Mr. Stark thought of as a lot of people.

 

Now, though---

 

Peter almost fell over himself when his feet planted into the ground when he hurried from the elevator and onto the communal floor. The room had tall ceilings, it’s own kitchenette type area off the left side and to the right, a pair of huge sectional sofas facing a massive flat screen television that hung on the wall.

 

And on the couch…

 

“Don’t be shy, kid, go say hello. They won’t bite.” Peter felt Tony’s hand on his shoulder, but couldn’t seem to move forward. “Well. Woodstock over there might. He’s a shifty character, watch out for that one.”

 

Peter looked up at him just in time to see him wink in the direction of the couches and when Peter returned his gaze to them, he noticed that Tony’s pronouncement had drawn the attention of the sofas occupants. Catching sight of a more familiar face, Peter perked up, his nerves suddenly forgotten.

 

“Mr. Rhodey!!” He shouted and bolted over to the seats. Rhodey had risen with a smile, coming around the seats and stilling just as Peter threw his arms around the man’s waist. Rhodey rubbed the kids head and returned the hug. 

 

Rhodey hadn’t been at the New Years Party. Something about a last minute emergency, something about the President and what had happened in Miami, but Peter hadn’t seen Rhodey in _so long_ and after the things he had seen on the news, he had been worried about him.

 

“What’s up, Peter!” Rhodey pulled back, expression impressed. “Little dude isn’t so little anymore, what’s May been feeding you? You’ve had to have grown a few inches since your birthday.”

 

Peter wasn’t quite sure that was true, but he grinned nonetheless. “Lots of takeout.”

 

Rhodey laughed at that, then turned to lead Peter around to the other side of the couches. “Come on, I’ll introduce you to everyone and then we’ll see how you are at gaming.”

 

Peter came to a stop near the arm of the chairs. There were only two others---one he recognized as Hawkeye, the other as Captain America, but they looked completely different wearing workout pants and loose shirts. They leaned forward and smiled when they saw him.

 

“We met at New Years, Rhodes,” Steve said with a nod and a wave.  “It’s nice to see you again, Peter.”

 

Peter wasn’t quite sure he was capable of saying anything intelligent at the moment, so he kept his mouth shut and nodded wordlessly.

 

“And this is Clint Barton,” Rhodey continued, gesturing to the man at the far end of the couch. 

 

“You’re the one with the arrows,” Peter said numbly, sounding a little awed. Clint just laughed. He stood up and leaned over to shake Peter’s hand. 

 

“That I am. Nice to meet you, kid, I’ve heard a lot about you.”

 

Peter’s eyes widened. He turned his head towards where they had entered the floor but Mr. Stark seemed to have disappeared. Mr. Stark talked about him, though? To other people when he wasn’t around? What did even say about him?

 

Peter hoped it was all good.

 

Steve’s voice “You ever played Nintendo, Peter?” 

 

“Steve,” Rhodey deadpanned. “Did you seriously just ask a 12-year-old kid that?”   
  


Steve held up a hand. “What? I don’t know, maybe he doesn’t even like video games.”

 

“I do.” Peter grinned. “I really like Nintendo. Can I be Jigglypuff?”

 

Steve frowned. “Jiggly-what?”

 

“Don’t let him, it’s a trap.” Clint piped in, a fond grin on his face as he watched Peter settle on the couch. “These kids and their Smash Brothers, I’m telling you, Steve…”

 

“Alright, Alright.” Steve made a “calm down” motion with his hands before leaning forward to grab the extra controller they apparently had waiting for Peter to use. “I’ve been playing a lot of it these last few months so I’m just saying…” He handed it over and Peter grinned even wider. “How about we just see what you got, kid?”

 

* * *

 

“We have been playing for over an hour. I can’t believe you won every single match,” Steve said, staring at the screen. “Whatever happened to the mercy rule?”

 

“There is no mercy rule when it comes to Nintendo, Mr. Steve.” 

 

Steve narrowed his eyes when he looked at him. “I underestimated you. You were so sweet at that New Years Party, but I’m onto you now.”

 

“I told you, Steve,” Clint shook his head. “You gotta watch out for kids these days, they’ll turn you inside out on these video games. Never, ever try online gaming if you can’t take Peter beating you.”

 

Peter laughed. “You should definitely not try online gaming.”

 

“It’s Tony. He’s been rubbing off on you, I can tell.”

 

Peter preened a little. Being compared to Mr. Stark wasn’t a bad thing by any stretch, he thought.  “Yup. And now that Mr. Stark isn’t Iron Man anymore, we’re gonna hang out a lot more.”

 

Mr. Steve looked a little puzzled at that. Peter noticed him look at Rhodey over his head curiously but reasserted his attention to the younger boy with a gentle smile. “Well, you sound like a pretty lucky kid if you get to hang out with Mr. Stark all the time.”   
  


A snort came from somewhere else in the room. The grin on Mr. Steve’s face made it seem like he was barely holding back a laugh.

 

“Har, har, Rogers, you can start paying me for rent then.” 

 

Peter straightened up and climbed onto his knees, turning to face the back of the couch. Mr. Stark had disappeared for a few moments but now he was back, changed into a black shirt and jeans, one of the more relaxed times Peter had ever seen him. 

 

“Mr. Stark! Mr. Steve let me play as Jigglypuff, and I beat him, Mr. Barton, _and_ Mr. Rhodey.”

 

Tony raised a brow at that. “Oh did you now? Bested by a 12-year-old, Cap? I’m judging you.”

 

“As someone who only learned how to play Nintendo a couple of months ago, I think I’m doing okay.”

 

“Aw, don’t worry, Mr. Rogers, I’m sure Pete likes you just the way you are,” Tony said with a wink at the boy. “I know I said you could play for a bit, buddy, but it’s getting a little late. How about you guys put a show on to wind down from all the Mario fun and then you get to bed?”

 

Peter frowned but didn’t object. “Fi _ne_.”

 

“You guys can smash bro it up all day tomorrow, May’s not coming to get you until Saturday.” Tony pointed at Steve. “Do not let me forget to make him brush his teeth.”

 

“I won’t.”

 

“I know I have to brush my teeth, I’m 12.” Peter pointed out, flopping back down on the couch. He looked at Steve sideways, then surveyed the rest of the scene. A movie did sound good and he was getting kind of tired, but he was enjoying playing the game---how often could anyone say they were playing video games with the Avengers?

 

“Let’s put on one of those Hunger Games movies,” Clint chimed in, kicking up his feet onto the couch. “Those movies are great.”

 

Rhodey snorted. “You only like those because she’s an archer.”

 

Clint shrugged, not objecting to his point. “They’re good movies.”

 

“I like the Hunger Games,” Peter piped in. “Can we?”

 

And so they began the first one since Steve hadn’t seen any of them yet. Somewhere during the movie, Peter had managed to curl up in the corner of one of the sectionals and had fallen asleep. He heard the rustling of a few people moving around, felt the couch move as they rose from their seats and his eyes fluttered open just a hair, enough to peak fuzzily around the room.

 

“He’s a really great kid, Tony.”

 

Steve was talking to Tony then. One of the lights had been turned off in the kitchen area and Peter couldn’t see and didn’t hear Mr. Barton or Mr. Rhodey. He shifted onto his side, flipping away from the light and where they stood, and he saw Steve and Tony stop in their tracks, looking over at him to see if he was going to get up. Once it appeared as if he were still asleep, Tony answered him. 

 

“Isn’t he though?”

 

The way he said it made Peter smile into the couch cushions. He knew that tone; Aunt May said he was smug when he talked like that but Peter thought it also was a bit proud, and it made him happy that Mr. Stark seemed to feel that way about him. 

 

“He mentioned you guys are gonna be spending more time around each other since you’re not going to be Iron Man anymore,” Steve began, sounding hesitant. “I wasn’t aware that was your plan.”

 

“Well,” Tony sighed. “You know that Pepper and I have talked about it. Stepping away a little. But whether it happens or not remains to seen.” He paused. “I mean, at the end of the day though, if you guys need me, I’m not gonna say no.”

 

“That’s good to know.”

 

The smugness was gone. Tony just seemed...tired and uncertain, and maybe even a little sorry. Peter decided he didn’t really want to hear any more of it and pushed himself up, making a loud sigh, rubbing at his eyes. 

 

“What time is it?”

The men seemed relieved to be done with their conversation. Tony tipped his head up, brows raising. “Time for bed. Thought I was gonna have to carry you for a second there, kiddo.”

 

“I can walk,” Peter grumbled, squinting in the light. “Thanks for playing Smash Brothers with me, Mr. Steve.”

 

“Thank _you_ , Peter. You were a worthy opponent, but I think I’ll get you tomorrow.”

 

Peter grinned sleepily, “You can try.”

 

“Alright tough guy, let’s go,” Tony tapped him on the shoulder, turning him to the elevator. “You can feed Steve his lunch more tomorrow.”

 

With a final wave, Peter allowed himself to be steered in the direction of the elevator. They were quiet on the way up, Tony messing around on his phone, but then the elevator dinged and Peter led the way towards their rooms. Tony stopped just before the doorway and looked at him.    


 

“PJs, Teeth, Sleep, in that order, yeah?”

 

Peter nodded, suddenly feeling more tired than before. He trudged into his room and towards the attached bathroom, grabbing his backpack as he went and took it with him. He washed his face and brushed his teeth ( _and_ flossed), and when he came out ready for bed, Tony was standing by the door.

 

“Everything on the list?”   
  


Peter nodded. 

 

“Alright. May gave me basically one job so…” He peered down at Peter, a curious look on his face. “What’s up with you buddy, I thought you had fun tonight? You seem a little flat.”

 

Peter shrugged. “I’m fine. Just tired.”

 

“Mmhmm,” Tony hummed, sounding completely not convinced. “You sure about that?”

 

Peter pushed himself onto the bed, shrugging again. “I don’t know.”

 

“Ah. Okay.” Tony walked into the room, pocketing his phone and sitting down next to him. “Kind of sounds like you do know and you don’t want to tell me. But you see, kid, if I think you’re not gonna sleep well, then I’m not gonna sleep well….”

 

Peter fiddled with his hands for a moment. Without looking up, he spoke quietly. “So...you’re not done being Iron Man?”

 

He heard Tony sigh heavily. “I knew you weren’t asleep. Look, Peter, it’s more complicated than a yes-or-no thing.”

 

“I know that.” Peter looked up. “I’m not a little kid anymore, I understand things like that.” Tony’s mouth twitched a little like he wanted to smile and Peter was happy he didn’t. “You just said that you weren’t gonna do it anymore and I thought…”

 

“I know what I said,” Tony began gently. “And I mostly mean it. Unfortunately, though, the bad guys don’t always like to play by our rules.”

 

Tony slipped off the bed, down onto one knee in front of him. “Look, Pete. I’m sorry I didn't tell you more about it. That wasn’t right. And I didn’t mean to. Iron Man is on the back burner for now, but I can’t promise he’s always gonna be. But no matter how busy I get, even if I don’t get to see you for a while because of it, you’re always gonna have a place here and you and I are still gonna be good. At least in my book.”

 

“So you’re not gonna like...go away?” Peter sat up straighter. “I mean, the Avengers are really important, I know that. But like...you would at least Aunt May know, right? If stuff happens?”

 

Tony nodded. “Of course. Absolutely. And you. I just...don't want to make promises I can’t keep, kid. I figured we’d just wing it and go from there, but I guess…” He smiled softly. “I have to remember you’re getting older and smarter, and I gotta treat you like it. I promise I’ll talk to you from now on. Make sure we’re still on the same page.”

 

“Okay.” Peter smiled. “For the record, I think it’s really cool you’re still gonna be Iron Man. He’s really cool.

 

“Yeah. I think so too. That doesn’t mean I’m not gonna make time to hang out with you, Pete. We’re in it now together, okay? Always gonna look out for you.” He smiled tightly. “Just might not be as often as we’d like. Is that alright with you?”

 

“Yeah,” Peter said with a nod. He looked around the room a little, then back to Tony. “I actually am kind of really tired though, Mr. Stark. Can we talk about this more tomorrow?”

 

Tony laughed. He laughed really loud and braced himself on the ground before pushing himself to his feet. Peter wondered why he was kind of being weird, but as he stood, it looked like he was a lot more relaxed and he kept smiling, even when he’d stopped laughing. Once he had his bearing, he set his hand on Peter’s head and rubbed it for a second, shaking his head. 

 

“Yeah, kid. Yeah, we can.” He waited as Peter slid under the covers. “Sleep tight, kid.”

 

“G’night Mr. Stark.”

 

The lights dimmed and Peter turned away from the door when he heard Mr. Stark close it behind him. Peter snuggled closer to the pillow at his side, pulling up the covers tighter with a smile on his face.

 

It had been a good day.   
  


 


End file.
